(TibetanReview.net, May16, 2014) – A Tibet campaign group in Germany said May 14 that it had collected 10,000 signatures on a petition asking China to release all the at least 850 political prisoners in occupied Tibet.

“Arbitrary arrests are a daily routine in Tibet. We demand the release of all political prisoners in Tibet. The Chinese government tries to systematically silence all critical voices within Tibet. Many political prisoners are being physically abused in a way that leads to their death,” said Anna Momburg-Vanderpool of the Tibet Initiative Germany e.V. (TID).

The group said there were currently at least 850 documented political prisoners in Tibet, with hundreds more believed to be missing. It has been campaigning for release of political prisoners in Tibet since 1989. The group noted that even possessing a picture of the Dalai Lama or participating in a demonstration could lead to imprisonment.

The group’s petition coincided with the May 13-16 visit to Frankfurt of Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama. He calls for genuine autonomy for Tibet while China condemns him as the fountainhead of Tibetan separatism.